Warm weather is here, time for a light, refreshing #beer…

It’s that time of year when the mercury is consistently above 75 degrees, the lawn and outdoor areas require constant attention, grills are fired up frequently, and everybody just wants to be outside.  It’s also that time of year when many people turn back to their old standby beers of canned piss because of their light, cold, and water-like characteristics to quench their thirst.  Consider this a Public Service Announcement:  You need not reach for that swill anymore.  You can find light bodied, crisp flavored, thirst quenching beers that actually achieve quality in taste and style for these summer months without regressing into the pool water that is Miller/Bud/Coors.  For this installment of a summer brew review (HA! A rhyme…free of charge!), I present Victory Brewing Company’s Prima Pils.

Victory Brewing Company (http://victorybeer.com/) is located in Downington, PA, close to the beer hub that is Philadelphia.  Opened in 1996, Victory has become adept at making a wide variety of styles and flavor profiles, with influences both American and European.  Readily available across the country, this is a beer just about all of my readers should be able to get their hands on.  Prima Pils is a German-style Pilsener, with an ABV of 5.3%, an IBU of 44, and it is available year-round.  For the Prima Pils, I will provide you with two reviews, one from a bottle and one on-tap, and this will also show some of the subtle differences that can be seen when changing serving styles.

Poured on-tap and served in a pint glass, the beer is a bright, flourescent yellow coloring with a huge amount of carbonation. There was a light, foamy white head across the top. The nose dances with light aromas of toast and lemon, which is very enticing. The flavors were effervescent and sharp, keeping the beer very light. Lemon essence and toasted malt, with slight sour and hoppy green undertones flood the taste buds. The finish is a bit roasty and lingering, with an astringent, drying, puckering and you get the point feel, which is very appropriate for the style.   If you find yourself at an establishment with outdoor seating and Prima Pils on-tap, then my friend, you have found a place to stay for a bit.

Picture by Paul A. Ner, http://bythepint.com/victory-prima-pils

Now, on to the bottle serving, which will be more appropriate for the lawnmowing/grilling/sitting around outside the house scenarios.  Poured from a bottle into a pint glass, the beer is a straw-yellow color, slightly cloudy, with no head or film. The beer has grainy and roasty smells, with bits of toasted wheat infiltraiting the nose. Flavors start off light, but burst through strongly on the mid-tongue. There are characteristics of smokey malt, cereal/grain, a hint of citrus and a splash of hops, which is refreshing in a Pils. The beer has a slightly sour aftertaste, with a filmy and long finish. Very smooth, despite the crisp and light body and slightly hopped flavor. Very easy to drink, and great with strong flavored foods, especially spicy ones.  Drinkability and light flavors give this an overall thirst quenching character, and weighing in 5.3% ABV, this is very sessionable.

So, my dear readers and fellow fans of the craft brew, get outside and do whatever it is you need to do.  Or, get outside and soak in the great weather.  Either way, grab yourself a real beer when you go out.  Hot weather is no excuse for a regression in quality.  And make sure to wear sunscreen…sunburns are a bitch, and you can trust that coming from this pale, Irish powder lookalike.  Welcome to summer everyone, and as always, drink educated my friends!

Novare Res Bier Cafe…awesome #beer bar in Portland, ME…

We traveled up to Portland, ME this past weekend and stopped by Novare Res Bier Cafe (http://www.novareresbiercafe.com/) in downtown.  This place is a beer lover’s dream. A bit hard to find, as it is not on any of the main drags in Portland, but it is worth seeking out. Currently at Novare it is Belgian Beer Week, so most of the 25 taps were filled with Belgian style offerings. Along with the increased tap space, there is a bottle list they claim is 500 strong, some slightly easy to get and others that are extremely difficulty to find on the open market.  The place is a little dark when you walk in, with two separate bar spaces to support all those tap lines. Because of the insane beer list at Novare, people tend to camp out at the bar, so don’t wait for people to move to try to place an order. Belly up in there and make yourself known. They do a really good job of replacing a tap line when a particular beer runs out, as well as marking it up on the wall so people know the MOST current tap list. Huge selection, as I said earlier, including a “vault” where you can get your hands on some rare and aged bottles. Definitely the place to go to knock some whales off of your “to do” list. Speaking of knocking off some rare beers, if you are feeling especially frosty, there is a Chalice Club that you can join, which requires enjoying all the beers on the list at Novare, thus providing you with a chalice of your own, a discount of some of the rarer beers, and other perks therefore earned.  The beers are a bit on the pricey side, but as I said, this is a place to get some very hard to find beers, so it kind of balances out. Very beer friendly crowd here, and there is a huge patio in front if you don’t want to mingle with the crowd indoors. At the back of the patio there is a cornhole/beanbag toss set up to play, so you can flex some friendly competitive muscles while treating your tastebuds to some tremendous brews. A section of the patio is also marked off for the smoking crowd, if that be your pleasure. Definitely a “must go” spot if you are visiting Portland, ME. We had an awesome time there! Novare Res gets my absolute recommendation to all of you in the beer world, and is definitely a place to expand your horizons no matter what your experience level is in the craft world.  Enjoy your travels, and as always, drink educated my friends!

Cinco de Mayo #beer

Saturday was Cinco de Mayo, which is a heralded holiday in our house despite not having a lick of Mexican descent on either side.  We just truly enjoy Mexican cuisine, as well as Margaritas, and are always open to an excuse to indulge in both.  Seemed like a fitting time to share my thoughts on one of the plethora of Mexican beers available out there.  I’m going to pick one out of a hat, since most of them are the same style (adjunct lagers), with the occasional amber or pilsner sneaking in there.  So, without further ado, todays brew will be….marraca roll please….

In the spirit of full disclosure, this wasn’t exactly a random choice.  Dos Equis Amber is my go to beer when dining Mexican.  I was especially tickled when we were at a resort in Playa del Carmen that actually had Dos Equis on tap, as most of them are supplied by Corona.  Alright, on to the review, and I promise I won’t make reference to this guy…

The beer is served on tap in a giant mug. What better way to douse the scorching flames of a burrito with “death sauce” on it than a gallon of ice-cold Dos Equis Amber?  Hazy and lots of bubbles, it is an amber color with a thick, frothy, off-white head.  It’s amazing what a great look you can get at a beer when it is served in a clear 10-gallon drum with a handle.  Apparently Mexican restaurants use glassware extras shipped from German Oktoberfest each year.  Make sure to switch hands while you drink so you don’t end up with one huge arm like that guy from “Lady in the Water.”  Toasted oats and semisweet caramel smells blend in nose, remaining light and nonintrusive. The beer is a decent tasting amber, and it’s toasty and light flavors are delivered on a sharp, crisp body.  The brew is very easy to drink, and does not interfere with your food no matter what you are eating, especially as you delve into the hotter offerings, which is where I live. Decent beer for what it is.  Honestly, when you are enjoying the delicious and commonly spicy fare, the beer should be an accent and/or fire extinguisher and not the centerpiece.  Hard to go wrong with this one, especially when compared to what is commonly offered in most Mexican restaurants.

When celebrating Cinco de Mayo, it is sometimes fun to pick up a little variety pack of beers to sample what is regularly available from our neighbors to the south.  I will tell you one thing, you won’t fill up or get too tipsy drinking these beers, as they tend to be light in style and ABV, as a rule.  Themed events are always fun, and it’s always sweet to have a reason to set up a taco bar.  Explore ethnic and cultural flavors, and as always, beber educado a mis amigos!

#Beer in memoriam…

People realize that they have made that transition into older, more responsible adults in different ways.  For some it happens with a new job/career, for others it is when they start a family.  Both of these were transitional milestones for me, but another came about this weekend.  My wife and I have recently added a child to our family mix, and I was finding it increasingly difficulty to justify the Mustang in the garage.  Now, before anyone thinks this was some huge sacrifice, it was a 2006, not some classic, rare automobile.  However, it was the first vehicle that I had bought for myself, and I have over the course of our time together crisscrossed the country more than once in the car.  You develop a bond with a car after time like that.  6 years, 90,000 miles and it was time to part ways.  The baby seat just wasn’t going to be practical in the back of that thing.  I had been prepping myself for the last year and a half for this, but it still seemed a bit sudden.  We went out this weekend to look at vehicles, and ended up finding a limited time deal that was too good to pass up.  And because of this, my car is gone.  So, in honor of my departed friend, I submit my review of Sebago Brewing Company’s Full Throttle Double IPA.  Full throttle is how I often drove, and surprisingly never got ticketed (with this car) despite the many memorable trips across this great nation of ours.  Alright, enough of this sappy crap, let’s get to the brew.

Sebago Brewing Company (http://www.sebagobrewing.com/) hails from the great state of Maine, and aside from the actual brewing premises there are multiple brewpub locations where you can enjoy some tasty fare and fresh beer throughout the southern part of the state.   Oddly enough, I was turned on to Full Throttle by a recommendation from one of the brewers of the Maine Beer Company.  One of the many things I love about the craft beer world is the sense of community there is amongst the different brewing companies.  Although the bottom line is competition, it seems to remain a friendly one, and there is great mingling and interacting throughout the craft beer world.

Poured from a bottle and served in a tumbler pint, the beer is a hazey, honey-copper coloring with a thick, frothy, off-white head that sits a solid inch and a half and slowly settles while you drink. Aromas are a citrus blend of grapefruit, tangerine, and orange, with a kiss of pineapple. All the fruity smells rest upon a resiny, peppery hops presence and a mildly sweet malt backbone. Flavors are rich and tart, with a solid presence from the citrus blend, along with a tantalizingly bitter hops foundation that rides the entire taste bud coverage straight to the back of the throat. Green, cedar profiles cover the mouth like moss, with a sharp spiciness and some slick, caramel malt tones hidden throughout. The aftertaste is sweet and resiny, with a dynamic mouthfeel that is both smooth and bitterly dry at the same time. Woody and citrus tart flavors lead into a slick, oily, and dry finish. Solid brew.

Of course, I will add the obligatory PSA to say that although I am combining my love of beer with my love of automobiles in this week’s post, the two should always been enjoyed separately.  Don’t be a douche and go out driving a sweet car hammered off your ass…I could care less what happens to someone who does that, it’s more what happens to the car that concerns me.  And other people, of course…that would be bad, too.  Well, enough digression from the subject at hand.  Available in 4-packs, this beer is an ass kicker.  Full bodied and full flavored, this one is a slow goer, and it takes that increased time to really peel back all the layers of flavors and different mouthfeels this beer brings to the table.  If you can find it, I recommend it.  So until next week, happy hunting in your local stores and beer vendors/establishments, and as always, drink educated my friends!

National #Beer Day in Germany…

April 23 is celebrated in Germany as National Beer Day.  In 1516, Frederik I of Bavaria introduced a law to guarantee the purity of beer.  The law is known as “Reinheitsgebot,” and it states that beer may only contain 4 staple ingredients; water, malt, hops, and yeast.  This law has been altered and retooled over the years to allow a little more leniency in the brewing world, including incorporating ingredients like wheat, sugar, and other tasty little components.  Originally put into law to not only keep beer pure, but to prevent price competition for rye and wheat, as well as maintain an affordable price on the beer itself.

It’s amazing to think that some of the most influential beers and beer styles came about from simply using four ingredients.  It really does help cast light on how dynamic different hops rhizomes, malt flavors, and even the different pH of water can impart unique characteristics on a brew.  Many beer experts can tell you which regions beer comes from based on the qualities of the region’s water supply and how that alters the beer that is made from it.  All of this amazement, and this crafting was occurring almost 500 years ago.  Blows my mind…and makes me thirsty.

So while I rummage the fridge for some German beer offerings, I hope you enjoy this little snippet of beer history.  It’s always interesting to see how so much can be done with limited resources while the major beer companies in the US do so little with unlimited resources.  Also, it’s always a good idea to know and appreciate history to fully understand the current state of affairs in any given subject.  Now, it’s time to celebrate German National Beer Day, so for all you folks out there, enjoy!  And drink educated, my friends!

#Beer Summit 2012…a hazy, disjointed recap…

Dad and I attended the day session of the 2012 Beer Summit in Boston yesterday, and now after 24 hours to allow my liver to recover and some of the haze to clear, I’m going to take a stab at a quasi-recap of the event and all the glorious beer that was available.  The event was held at the Park Plaza Castle in Boston, which gave a big, open room that was set up with a middle island of vendors, as well as booths all along the perimeter.

Upon entry, you were handed a booklet listing the brewers and the beer they brought with them, as well as a map with the layout of the brewers.  In theory, the map was a nice touch, but after making a lap and getting piled in with everyone, it was much easier just to explore and wing it.  We got in with the first wave of 100 people or so, so the first lap around was a breeze, with no wait in line and not a lot of congestion walking through.  By the second lap, this place was packed in tight, so you got to work on your dexterity while balancing a mini-mug of beer and any of the swag you may have scored from the brewers.  Of course, as one might imagine, this task got more daunting the more laps around we made.  Our session ran from 12:30-4:00, so many laps were made.

There was a very good selection of local brewers and their offerings, as well as some local distributors bringing out the beers that they offer to the local patrons and stores.  As we made our initial laps around we primarily aimed for breweries that were either new to us or were just outside of where we could easily travel to/visit.  As the day went on, all plans went out the window and we just tried whatever was being poured.  We bounced back and forth like pinballs on speed.  Most of the brewers had at least three beers on-tap to sample, although a few had only two, and some had four or five.  There weren’t any ultra-rare or hard to find beers being offered, so the lines tended to flow smoothly, with only minimal waiting here and there.  If you had a mini-mug poured and went to get into the next line, you had more than enough beer to tide you over while the line quickly progressed.  This actually allowed for some walking and maneuvering time between samples.  There was a concession area where you could purchase chili, hot dogs, pulled pork sandwiches, or giant pretzels.  Giant pretzels are the way we chose to go, three times over to be exact.  Not too many strong flavors to interfere with the beer, and plenty of absorption qualities for the well-being of the taster.  That almost worked for me, but that story is for a later time.  There was also a booth selling pretzel necklaces for $4 a piece, which is genius, because we saw dozens of people wearing them, and a bag of pretzels probably makes at least 2 or 3 necklaces, which is a huge profit!

The only gripes we could come up with were minimal ones.  The first was that they allowed smoking directly outside of the front door where all of the port-o-johns were, so if you had to pee (and let me tell you that is inevitable) you had to wallow through all the cancer sticks.  The second was that there were no dump/rinse stations.  Granted, the beers there were very decent, but every once in a while you are going to come across one that isn’t up your alley, and there was no place to ditch the wounded soldier and get a clean start in the mug.  Other than that, it was a fun event.  We got to try some local fare from the craft beer world and make an unofficial “to visit” list of breweries in New England.

As unofficial as I can make it, there are some winners (in our eyes) from the event yesterday.  In no particular order, the Danielson Seal(s) of Approval go out to:

1- Crabbie’s Ginger Beer – the guy pouring told us this was the beverage’s debut weekend stateside.  The brew, according to him, is a huge hit in the UK, and I gotta say it was damn tasty.  Low ABV, and he served it chilled with a lime.  This would make a kickass Dark N Stormy, too.  Worth finding, if you can, although he said initial offering was only about 9 states.

2- Flying Goose Chocolate Milk Stout – just as tasty as the name implies, with a smooth body and mouthfeel, well-balanced flavors, and a clean finish.  Looking forward to visiting this brewery as soon as possible.

3- Gardner Ale House Wicked Big Stout – a bigger, heavier, higher ABV stout that remains very drinkable and dry.  Bold flavors and palate pleasing, this is a great beer from “The only brewpub in North Central, MA.”

4- Ipswich 5 Mile Pumpernickel Rye Porter – The 5 Mile series crafts beers using only ingredients within a five-mile radius of the brewery, and this one is dark, smooth, robust, and oh so tasty.  You truly get a diverse blending of dark grain flavors on a creamy smooth body.  Delicious.

5- Peak Organic Espresso Amber – normally you see coffee and espresso flavors tagging along with darker styles like Porters and Stouts, so I was intrigued to spot an Amber touting such a dark, roasty character.  This is a damn good beer, with the full flavors of the Espresso imparting their bitter and heavy flavor profiles on an extremely drinkable Amber body.  This one is worth tracking down, folks.

6- Shipyard Monkey Fist IPA – a new offering from Shipyard, this is a tasty, light, and bright IPA.  Should be available by the end of next week throughout New England.  There are 2 other beers named Monkey Fist available out and about, so this may get renamed, but no matter what the name, it’s an IPA worth picking up!

7- Revival Double Black IPA – just what the name describes, this is a dark, heavy, bold, boozey IPA that is easy to drink, very layered on the palate, and tasty.  Revival is a small brewery in Providence, RI, and worth a visit, as they are not bottling/distributing as of this writing.  Delicious beer, and they have an IPA that is very decent, too.

So, the big thing to take from this is that a festival is an easy way to sample beers from all over, but sometimes a good way to sample some things closer to you than you may realize and open your eyes to some new day excursions.  Also, pretzels can do the job of beer absorption during an event, but do not sabotage said pretzel plans with nasty, greasy food shortly afterwards and you should be just fine.  Trust me.  And the bottom line, as always, is to have fun and keep an open mind.  These things are a blast!  Get out there, explore, and drink educated my friends!

Hoppy Easter…what better #beer than an IPA??

Since the entire mythos around Easter truly makes no sense, when you seriously break it down, I figured I’d throw a review on an IPA up.  I mean, hoppy and Easter go together, since somehow the holiday is represented by a bunny that leaves behind eggs and candy.  Wierd.  And, this particular beer I have reviewed twice; once on-tap and once from a bottle, so now you will be subjected/enlightened by both.

The beer of choice this week is Bear Republic Brewing Company’s (http://www.bearrepublic.com/) Racer 5 India Pale Ale.  The beer is one of the more highly regarded American IPAs available, and rightly so.  I was able to enjoy this initially while living in southern California, and then was rejoiced to find it readily available in the New England area.

The first time I had this beer was from a bottle.  Poured into a pint glass, the beer is a vibrant, crystal orange-gold coloring with a nice, thick, foamy white head. There are smells of hops, naturally, but also green grass, with highlights of effervescent lemon and other citrus sweet notes. At this point, the head is still present, which is impressive retention, and the Brussels lacing along the glass is also very nice to see. The beer is creamy and smooth in mouth, and the hops flavor becomes the foundation for all of the other flavors to balance on. There are definite characteristics of citrus notes, only now shifting more to a grapefruit flavor. Some very light toffee sweetness is also flitting in and out of the picture. The beer, as stated before, is creamy in mouth, but finished smooth, with little lingering. What does hang around on the aftertaste is a very mild hoppy flavor, with a slighty peppered feel to it. Smooth, clean finish makes this an easy drinker, and this is a beer I could definitely get in trouble with! That being said, when I stumbled upon it in a bar, I couldn’t resist trying this nectar on-tap.

Served on-tap at the La Jolla Brewhouse in CA, the beer was served in a pint glass, and it pours a clear yellow-gold color with a thin, filmy head. Well rounded aromas of sweet malt and light hops, with citrus and slight spicy highlights. The flavors are bitter and sour initially, with a bit of green and peppery taste at the end. The body is creamy and buttery; very smooth. Hoppy and tart aftertaste, which is very pleasant, and an easy, smooth finish. A very tasty brew once again!  You really can’t go wrong either way when you stumble across this beer, unless you pass it by.  Do yourselves a favor and buy it!

I really enjoy doing beers that are more readily available nationwide, as it gives the reader a little incentive to actually know that they can find this while they are out and about in the world.  The uber-rare beers are fun to do, don’t get me wrong, but not as globally practical to everyone.  I do love IPAs, and try not to show a complete bias to the style, but when it’s a doozy like this one, I feel the need to share.  Hopefully you can find this and give it a try, and hopefully you appreciate it as much as I do.  And as always, drink educated my friends!